The
Mars Global Surveyor mission was the first
successful mission in 20 years - after the string of
failures.

What makes the Mars Global Surveyor a
remarkable experiment is that it used the concept of
aerobraking to achieve
orbit. Instead of using
fuel and engine power to reduce speed during
orbit,
the orbiter used the atmosphere of Mars to reduce
speed.

The probe was launched on November 7, 1996
and entered
orbit on September 11, 1997. This
mission is still in progress.

The purpose of the probe is to provide high
resolution maps of Mars. It was these same types of
maps that helped chose a landing site for the
Mars
Exploration Rovers.

An example of the image
resolution capability is seen in the image below:

This image shows the location of the Opportunity
rover and its target, the Endurance Crater.
Additionally, the lander is also present.